Harvesting cam reel with convertible transport mode

ABSTRACT

A cam reel for use on a harvesting header that can be configured in both operating and transport positions is provided. The reel comprises a plurality of finger-bearing reel bats disposed evenly around the reel shaft, each rotatably attached through the distal ends of radial arms extending outwardly from the reel shaft. A cam disc is attached to the frame and engages each reel bat by a cam follower, to provide rotational movement of the reel bats relative to the radial arms, during rotation of the shaft in the operating position. The cam has at least one operating position, and a transport position in which the engaged reel bats will be pivoted into transport mode that substantially reduces the risk of damage to the fingers.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/284,346 filed on May 21, 2014. This application also claims theforeign priority benefit of Canadian Patent Application Serial No.2,847,456 filed on Mar. 26, 2014. The entire contents of theaforementioned applications are incorporated by reference herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention is in the field of harvesting equipment, and inparticular for rotary reels on crop material harvesting or cuttingheaders and the drive systems used therefore.

BACKGROUND

It is known in the field of crop harvesting equipment to employharvesting headers to cut crops for various purposes, such as feeding acombine harvester or swathing crop material.

At the front of a combine or swather is the portion referred to as theheader. A typical header is equipped with a cutter bar, and a conveyordeck or surface behind the cutter bar onto which cut crop material willfall, and a rear wall of the header, which extends up from the rear ofthe crop catching surface.

The reel in a harvesting header is typically designed to beapproximately the same width as the header. The reel shaft is mountedbetween two rotational mounts at either end thereof, with a power driveattached to rotate the reel shaft. There is then a plurality of reelbats with fingers that are equally spaced about the reel shaft, and heldin position by a plurality of radially extending arms out from theshaft. Rotation of the reel shaft results in the rotation of the reelbats and fingers through the crop in front of the header, drawing thecrop material into the cutter bar and the remainder of the device.

Harvesting headers now manufactured with fingers attached to the reelbats typically have the reel bats themselves rotatably mounted inrelation to their attachment points, and include a cam mechanism that byselective or guided rotation of the reel bat during the rotation of theoverall reel, allows the tips of the fingers to follow a more complexpath, into, through and out of the crop material as the reel turns. Thecams are of different shapes including circular or otherwise, dependentupon the path of travel that is desired for the fingers. Example ofprior art patents in the area of the use of cam mechanisms to orient oradjust the orientation of the fingers on reel bats during the rotationof a harvesting header reel include U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,558 (Mott) andU.S. Pat. No. 5,768,870 (Talbot et al.).

Often the header or reel is transported by loading the header onto atransport trailer or other platform designed to orient the headerlengthwise so it can be trailered in the direction of travel of a powerunit such as a tractor or a truck. The size of many headers and theirassociated reel is such that there are many protruding parts,particularly the fingers along the top and crop facing face of the reel.These fingers are often made of plastic or other shearable material,which allows for simpler maintenance of the reel.

The design of prior art reels is such that the fingers, particularlythose facing the crop entry and cutting area, are oriented in a fullyoutstretched or radial direction as they need to be in order to providemaximum engagement with crop material. However, this creates a problemduring transport of the header since extended fingers are moresusceptible to damage and breakage due to be exposed. As a result, manytimes following transport the first task that must be undertaken beforethe header can be used again is to replace any broken or bent fingers asa result of the transport. The same issue of protruding componentsexists in circumstances where the header and associated reel aretransported in operating position on the harvesting unit.

Accordingly, a harvesting header reel that minimized the protrudingprofile of the bat fingers during transport would be desirable as ameans of minimizing damage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure is generally directed to the concept of a camreel that has a operating mode and a convertible transport mode, wherebythe reel bats can be moved to a position such that protrusion offingers, and the risk of damage to the same, will be minimized when inthe transport mode.

The key differentiator of the present disclosure from prior artharvesting header and cam reel combinations in the prior art is in thecam system that is used. The crop-harvesting header as disclosed hereinincludes a reel for moving crop material into the cutter bar and ontothe conveyor deck. The reel includes a reel shaft that has a first endand a second end and a reel axis. The reel shaft is rotatably mounted toand between the reel ends of the frame, and also has a rotational powersource connected thereto for the purpose of rotation of the reel shaftin operation of the header. When rotational power is applied to the reelshaft during operation of the header, the reel rotates around the reelaxis defined by the shaft to provide the sweeping action necessary toengage the crop being harvested.

The reel will also include a plurality of reel bats that are mounted inspaced apart positions around the circumference of the reel shaft. Eachreel bat comprises a bat member with a bat axis, and a plurality of cropfingers attached thereto and extending generally radially outwardly fromthe reel shaft. The crop fingers will engage the crop material as theheader and the reel on the front of the header are moved through astanding crop.

The reel bats as outlined are attached in spaced apart positions aroundthe circumference of the reel shaft. It is specifically contemplatedthat each reel bat is attached by, and corresponds to, a plurality ofradial arms extending outwardly from the reel shaft. These radial armsthat attach the reel bats in a typical cam reel design are sometimesinterchangeably referred to as “spiders” in the prior art as well. It isspecifically contemplated that at least two radial arms would berequired for the mounting of each reel bat to the reel shaft, one ofeach pair of such at least two radial arms being in proximity to eachend of the reel shaft and the bat member. For increased rigidity orstability in the construction of the remainder of the reel however, anynumber of radial arms could be used to attach each reel bat. The radialarms for all of the reel bats would be generally the same length as wellof the bat arms for each reel bat, and the reel ends of the radial armswould define when viewed from the side a circular bat path through whichthe radial arms would move during rotation of the reel shaft.

The invention also provides that the cam assembly is adjustable betweenone or more operating positions, and a transport position. When in thetransport position, the cam will be rotated such that the cam followersrotate the bats and fingers so that fingers, especially those at thefront of the header and which are most susceptible to damage, will berotated generally inwards, protecting them from damage and/or contactwith persons or structures as can occur in prior art systems.

Thus, in some embodiments, the present disclosure provides a cropharvesting header for the harvesting of crop material, said cropharvesting header comprising: a frame for movement in a travel directionacross a crop field, said frame having two reel ends defining thecutting width of the header; a transverse conveyor deck extendingbetween the reel ends of the frame, the conveyor deck carrying aconveyor system which will move cut crop material along the conveyordeck to a header discharge; a cutter bar along the forward edge of theconveyor deck, which will cut crop material engaged by the header movingunder power through the crop; and a reel for moving crop material intothe cutter bar and onto the conveyor deck, wherein the reel comprises: areel shaft having a first end and a second end and a reel axis,rotatably mounted to and between the reel ends of the frame; rotationalpower source connected to the reel shaft to rotate the reel; a pluralityof reel bats each of which has a plurality of crop fingers attachedthereon extending generally radially outwardly from the reel shaft, thereel bats being mounted in spaced apart positions around thecircumference of the reel shaft; a plurality of radial arms extendingoutward from the reel shaft corresponding to each reel bat, each reelbat being rotatably attached at the distal ends of the correspondingradial arms such that the reel bat can rotate freely around a bat axisextending through the distal ends of the radial arms; a cam mounted onthe frame perpendicular to the reel axis near the first end of the reelshaft; a cam follower corresponding to each reel bat which is pivotallyattached at one end to the reel bat and at a second end engages the camso that it can follow the cam and exert rotational force on the reel batto pivot the reel bat around the bat axis as the reel is rotated;wherein the cam has at least one operating position in which it can beselectably positioned, wherein upon positioning of the cam in the atleast one operating position the resultant positioning of the camfollowers and the reel bats will extend the fingers generally radiallyoutwardly from the reel shaft so that the fingers will be positioned toengage the crop material; and wherein the cam is further positionable ina transport position, wherein upon positioning of the cam in thetransport position the resultant positioning of the cam followers andreel bats will rotate the fingers such that the fingers aresubstantially protected from damage during transport of the header.

In some embodiments, the number of operating positions is one. In someembodiments, the number of operating positions is more than one.

In some embodiments, the cam comprises a cam disc rotatably mounted tothe frame around the first end of the reel shaft, and a lock to lock thecam in the selected operating or transport position.

In some embodiments, a crop harvesting header further comprises: asecond cam mounted on the frame perpendicular to the reel axis near thesecond end of the reel shaft; and a second cam follower corresponding toeach reel bat which is pivotally attached at one end to the reel bat andat a second end engages the second cam so that it can follow the secondcam and exert rotational force on the reel bat to pivot the reel bataround the bat axis as the reel is rotated; wherein the second cammirrors in shape and mounting at the second end the shape and mountingof the cam mounted at the first end, to avoid excessive torsional forceon the reel bats as the reel is rotated; wherein the second cam has atleast one operating position in which it can be selectably positioned,wherein upon positioning of the second cam in the at least one operatingposition the resultant positioning of the second cam followers and thereel bats will extend the fingers generally radially outwardly from thereel shaft so that the fingers will be positioned to engage the cropmaterial; and wherein the second cam is further positionable in atransport position, wherein upon positioning of the second cam in thetransport position the resultant positioning of the second cam followersand reel bats will rotate the fingers such that the fingers aresubstantially protected from damage during transport of the header.

In embodiments comprising a second cam, the number of operatingpositions is one. In embodiments comprising a second cam the number ofoperating positions is more than one.

In some embodiments, the second cam comprises a second cam discrotatably mounted to the frame around the second end of the reel shaft,and a second cam lock to lock the second cam in the selected operatingor transport position.

In some embodiments, the at least one operating position and transportposition of the cam are indicated by a plurality of lock-engaging holesextending through the cam disc, and the lock comprises a locking pinthat can be extended through a lock-engaging hole in the cam disc to alocking hole in the frame.

In some embodiments, the at least one operating position and transportposition of the second cam are indicated by a plurality of lock-engagingholes extending through the second cam disc, and the second cam lockcomprises a locking pin which can be extended through a lock-engaginghole in the cam disc to a locking hole in the frame.

In some embodiments, when the cam is in the transport position, thefingers of the reel bats are generally retracted into position along apath defined by the distal ends of the radial arms.

In some embodiments, the crop-harvesting header further comprises a reellock, effective to prevent rotation of the reel during transport.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

While the invention is claimed in the concluding portions hereof,preferred embodiments are provided in the accompanying detaileddescription which may be best understood in conjunction with theaccompanying diagrams where like parts in each of the several diagramsare labeled with like numerals, and where:

FIG. 1 is a schematic side elevational view of a prior art cam reel of aharvesting header;

FIG. 2 is a side schematic side demonstrating the normal extension ofthe fingers when the reel is configured in an operating position;

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are side views of a reel with a complex bat pathwith adjustable cam mechanism that permits the reel to be configuredbetween an operating position (A) and a transport position (B); and

FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B are side views of a prior art reel made to beconfigurable in an operating position (A) and a transport position (B)using an adjustable cam system of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following discussion provides many example embodiments of theinventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a singlecombination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter isconsidered to include all possible combinations of the disclosedelements.

Harvesting headers, as outlined elsewhere herein and understood to thoseskilled in the art of crop harvesting technology are the cutting faceattachment which is typically used either with a swather or windrowingmachine, or with a combine harvester or the like. The header typicallyincludes a reel rotatably mounted approximately perpendicular to theoperating direction of travel of the implement, which will when rotatedfeed crop material from the field into a cutter bar mounted along thefront of the header, and once it passes over the cutter bar and is cut,deposit that cut crop material into an auger or onto a draper conveyorwhich will feed it either to a discharge in the case of this water whengrowing machine, or into the throat of a combine harvester etc.

Different types of headers have been developed over the years thatbehave differently in different types of crop material as well as are ofvarying construction and width. The width of the header is one of theprimary determining factors of the speed of harvesting, since a widerheader can cut a wider windrow or swath such that fewer passes will berequired in order to process a a crop in a field. As outlined above andas is understood to those skilled in the art of the manufacturingoperation of harvesting equipment, over the last number of years reelassemblies that use a cam construction at the ends of the reel torotatably orient the reel bats and the fingers thereon during rotationof the reel have become the norm.

FIG. 1 depicts a schematic side elevational view of a prior art cam reelof a harvesting header. This Figure has been extracted from CanadianPatent No. 2,358,883. Many of the components of the typical harvestingheader are demonstrated in this figure and it is shown for this purposeas well to inform the understanding of the reader in the general stateof the art and the technology.

The general configuration of the header includes a frame structure,shown at 1, which includes a main beam 2 extending across the width ofthe frame 1 and two end frame 15 members 3, which extend forward fromthe rear of the header and away from the main beam 2.

The frame structure 1 also includes a deck 4 onto which crop materialafter it is cut is placed. The deck 4 extends between the end framemembers 3. There is a cutter bar 5 shown as well, along the front of thedeck 4, which will cut the crop material as the reel feeds it therein.The harvesting header shown employs an auger 6 for the feeding of cropmaterial to the discharge or throat across the deck 4. Other types ofheaders use a draper conveyor in place of or in addition to an auger 6and both such approaches will be understood to be contemplated withinthe scope of the present invention in terms of utility or applicabilityof the cam reel configuration of the present invention.

In addition to the transverse conveyor deck 4, which extends between theend frame members 3, there is also a reel 7 that extends across thewidth of the header above and reaching forward of the cutter bar 5. Thisconventional reel 7 includes a shaft 8 that is rotationally attached tothe end frame members 3 so that the position of the shaft 8 is fixedrelative to the cutter bar 5. The reel 7 also includes a plurality ofreel bats 9 which are in equally spaced positions around the axis 10 ofthe shaft 8. The reel bats 9 are rotatably attached so that they canrotate within their mountings as the shaft 8 and the reel 7 are rotatedduring operation. In the embodiment shown, each of the bats 9 comprisesa bat tube 11 with a plurality of fingers 12 attached thereto whichextend radially outward from the tube 11, and the shaft 8, at apredetermined angle. The plurality of fingers 12 are spaced in positionsalong the length of the bat 9, with all of the fingers being arranged ata similar angle in relation to the axis 13 of the bat 11.

The bat tubes 11 are mounted to a plurality of radial support arms 14,extending outwardly from the shaft 8. In this particular case a supportplate 15 is shown attaching these radial arms 14 to the shaft 8. Thenumber of radial arms 14 spaced around the shaft 8 will vary dependentupon the number of bats 9 which are used in the particular reelconfiguration. As well, the number of support plate and radial armcombinations spaced along the length of the shaft would be varied basedupon the width of the header and the amount of support required by thereel bats 9.

The bat tubes 11 are rotationally mounted to their radial arms 14, sothat they can turn in relation to their axis 13 while remaining attachedthereto.

Each of the bat tubes 11 is attached to or includes a crank arm 16,which is attached to the tube 11 in such a way that the inner end of thecrank arm 16 will rotate with the tube 11 around the axis 13 of thetube. Each crank arm 16 includes a cam follower 17 and its outer end,which is capable of engaging a cam track 18. The cam follower 17 itselfhas a cam follower axis 19 about which it can rotate. The crank arm 16is attached to provide the application of rotational force to the tube11 during the operation of the reel 7.

Many different types of cam followers and corresponding cam trackconfigurations or pairings will be understood. The cam track 18 definesa path around the axis 8 of the reel but is offset from the axis 8 andin this case is non-circular, so that the crank arms 16 will move andthey will rotate around their respective bat axis 13 and generate aparticular pattern of movement of the fingers 12 attached to that bat 9as the reel 7 rotates. By changing the shape of the cam track 18 thebehavior of the fingers 12 during rotation of the reel 7 can bemodified.

In operation when the shaft 8 is rotated the reel 7 will be actuated. Asthe shaft 8 is rotated, the radial arms 14 will rotate with the battubes 11 attached at their ends. Those reel bats 9 will turn in a circleof constant radius defined by the distance between the axis 10 of theshaft 8 and the axis 13 of the reel bats 9. This is the bat path BP. Thebat path (BP) of this particular reel design is shown by dotted circlein this Figure. Overall it will be understood that the behavior of thebats 9 in rotation of the reel 7 in this embodiment and similarembodiments will be that the bats 9 themselves will travel aroundcircular bat path BP and the only change in behavior of the fingers 12would be generated by the rotation of the tubes 11 of the bats 9 withintheir rotational attachments on the radial arms 14.

Operating and Transport Configurations

There are a number of prior art reel and header combinations whichinclude fingers mounted on rotatable bat tubes. For example, the exampleof a prior art cam reel shown in FIG. 1 provides for a plurality offingers 12 mounted on bat tubes 11, which are mounted to be rotated inresponse to the operation of the cam as described above in reference toFIG. 1. One limitation of these header designs is that by definition,those rows of fingers on bats positioned at the front of the reel willextend past the reel. This can be easily seen in FIG. 2, where thefingers 34 are most extended radially from the reel axis at the front ofthe reel (the left side of the drawing). This positioning is desirablein the operating configuration as it sets the fingers at an angle tomore efficiently engage and sweep the crop towards the header table asthe reel rotates, as can be appreciated in the illustration. Theillustration depicts the position of a finger at intervals of timeduring the course of a rotation of the reel, the reel rotating in acounterclockwise direction in this particular depiction.

While this is a desired position during operation of the combine headeras it properly positions the fingers to engage the crop being harvested,it is less desirable when the header is being transported, as a resultof the fingers extending outwards from the reel. The fingers beingextended past the body of the reel results in an increased potential forcatching the fingers on structures, vehicles as the header is beingtransported, as well as risking injury to persons operating around theheader. There is further risk of deforming and/or breaking off offingers during transport given that they are in an unprotected position.

In the present invention, the cam is further adjustable between aoperating position and a transport position. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4,when the cam 30 is set in the operating position (A) the positioning ofthe cam will be moved relatively forward with respect to the reel. Inthe operating position this positioning of the cam will cause the camfollowers to be positioned such that the reel bats of the front mostbats will be rotated in such a manner so as to cause the fingers mountedon the bat tube to extend generally radially outward from the reelshaft, as is also shown in FIG. 2. Thus, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 4A,selecting the operating position for the cam result in orientation ofthe fingers 34 such that fingers on bats positioned at the front mostportion of the reel (two bat finger rows indicated as X) will extendoutwards in the optimal configuration for engaging and moving the cropmaterial rearwards towards the header table.

In contrast, when preparing the header for transport, a user will beable to select a transport position for the cam. As shown in FIGS. 3Band 4B, when the cam is placed in the transport position, thepositioning of the cam will move rearward with respect to the reel andthe operating position. This in turn positions the cam follower and thebats such that the fingers on the front most bats that would be extendedin the operation positions, are now rotated substantially inwards(indicated by Y).

Conveniently, the present cam design that is configurable betweenoperating and transport positions can be applied as an after marketimprovement to prior art reel designs (as shown in FIG. 4), or includedwith a novel reel design having a cam and follower design that producesa complex bat path when the reel is in operation (as shown in FIG. 3).

In the present design, it is also possible to have one or more operatingpositions. For example, depending on how aggressively one wishes toengage the crop, the positionable nature of the cam mechanism wouldallow a user to select one or more operating positions. In eachoperating position the finger would be generally oriented to extendradially outward with respect to the reel shaft at the point where thefingers would be expected to engage the crop being harvested.

As is also shown in FIG. 2, the cam can include a number ofpredetermined operating positions through which the cam positioning maybe adjusted. As shown, a series of positioning holes 49 provide detents,or stops, defining a number of different operating positions. The holesmay be engaged and the cam locked into position during operation bymeans of pins, bolts, or any other suitable engaging fastener tomaintain the cam in the desired position. The various holes would permitadjustment of the operating behaviour of the reel and fingers 34,depending on the setting chose. Changing the positioning of the camrelative to the positioning holes can also be used to modify the batpath.

The present design also provides for there to be a locking mechanism inorder to secure the cam position in any of the selectable positions,whether it be one or more possible operating positions, or in thetransport position. In some cases, the locking mechanism can comprise aseries of engagement holes in the cam disc as described above that canbe put into alignment with a corresponding locking hole in the frame.

In some embodiments, the cam can be configured to be movable throughabout 180° of rotation in moving from an operating position to atransport position. The precise arc through which the cam is rotated isnot critical to the advantage provided by this feature. It willtherefore be apparent to those of skill in the art how much rotation isrequired in order to substantially rotate the front most bat fingersinwards whereby they are less likely to contact structures or personsduring transport.

In addition, in some embodiments it may be preferable to provide alocking mechanism to secure the reel in place during transport in orderto prevent rotation of the reel and possible damage to its components,such as the fingers. Like the methods for securing the reel cam in anoperating position, the transport lock can make use of pins, locks andother fasteners known in the art in order to secure the reel and toprevent its movement when the header is being transported.

It will be apparent to those of skill in the art that by modificationthe present invention can be optimized for use in a wide range ofconditions and applications, and in particular for different types ofcrops and various models of combine. It will also be obvious to those ofskill in the art that there are various ways and designs with which toproduce the apparatus and methods of the present invention. Theillustrated embodiments are therefore not intended to limit the scope ofthe invention, but to provide examples of the apparatus and method toenable those of skill in the art to appreciate the inventive concept.

1. A crop harvesting header for the harvesting of crop material, said crop harvesting header comprising: a. a frame for movement in a travel direction across a crop field, said frame having two reel ends defining the cutting width of the header; b. a transverse conveyor deck extending between the reel ends of the frame, the conveyor deck carrying a conveyor system which will move cut crop material along the conveyor deck to a header discharge; c. a cutter bar along the forward edge of the conveyor deck, which will cut crop material engaged by the header moving under power through the crop; and d. a reel for moving crop material into the cutter bar and onto the conveyor deck, wherein the reel comprises: i. a reel shaft having a first end and a second end and a reel axis, rotatably mounted to and between the reel ends of the frame; ii. rotational power source connected to the reel shaft to rotate the reel; iii. a plurality of reel bats each of which has a plurality of crop fingers attached thereon extending generally radially outwardly from the reel shaft, the reel bats being mounted in spaced apart positions around the circumference of the reel shaft; iv. a plurality of radial arms extending outward from the reel shaft corresponding to each reel bat, each reel bat being rotatably attached at the distal ends of the corresponding radial arms such that the reel bat can rotate freely around a bat axis extending through the distal ends of the radial arms; v. a cam mounted on the frame perpendicular to the reel axis near the first end of the reel shaft; vi. a cam follower corresponding to each reel bat which is pivotally attached at one end to the reel bat and at a second end engages the cam so that it can follow the cam and exert rotational force on the reel bat to pivot the reel bat around the bat axis as the reel is rotated; wherein the cam has at least one operating position in which it can be selectably positioned, wherein upon positioning of the cam in the at least one operating position the resultant positioning of the cam followers and the reel bats will extend the fingers generally radially outwardly from the reel shaft so that the fingers will be positioned to engage the crop material; and wherein the cam is further positionable in a transport position, wherein upon positioning of the cam in the transport position the resultant positioning of the cam followers and reel bats will rotate the fingers such that the fingers are substantially protected from damage during transport of the header.
 2. The crop harvesting header of claim 1 wherein the number of operating positions is one.
 3. The crop harvesting header of claim 1 wherein the number of operating positions is more than one.
 4. The crop harvesting header of claim 1 wherein the cam comprises a cam disc rotatably mounted to the frame around the first end of the reel shaft, and a lock to lock the cam in the selected operating or transport position.
 5. The crop harvesting header of claim 1 further comprising: a. a second cam mounted on the frame perpendicular to the reel axis near the second end of the reel shaft; and b. a second cam follower corresponding to each reel bat which is pivotally attached at one end to the reel bat and at a second end engages the second cam so that it can follow the second cam and exert rotational force on the reel bat to pivot the reel bat around the bat axis as the reel is rotated; wherein the second cam mirrors in shape and mounting at the second end the shape and mounting of the cam mounted at the first end, to avoid excessive torsional force on the reel bats as the reel is rotated; wherein the second cam has at least one operating position in which it can be selectably positioned, wherein upon positioning of the second cam in the at least one operating position the resultant positioning of the second cam followers and the reel bats will extend the fingers generally radially outwardly from the reel shaft so that the fingers will be positioned to engage the crop material; and wherein the second cam is further positionable in a transport position, wherein upon positioning of the second cam in the transport position the resultant positioning of the second cam followers and reel bats will rotate the fingers such that the fingers are substantially protected from damage during transport of the header.
 6. The crop harvesting header of claim 5 wherein the number of operating positions is one.
 7. The crop harvesting header of claim 5 wherein the number of operating positions is more than one.
 8. The crop harvesting header of claim 5 wherein the second cam comprises a second cam disc rotatably mounted to the frame around the second end of the reel shaft, and a second cam lock to lock the second cam in the selected operating or transport position.
 9. The crop harvesting header of claim 4 wherein the at least one operating position and transport position of the cam are indicated by a plurality of lock-engaging holes extending through the cam disc, and the lock comprises a locking pin that can be extended through a lock-engaging hole in the cam disc to a locking hole in the frame.
 10. The crop harvesting header of claim 8 wherein the at least one operating position and transport position of the second cam are indicated by a plurality of lock-engaging holes extending through the second cam disc, and the second cam lock comprises a locking pin which can be extended through a lock-engaging hole in the cam disc to a locking hole in the frame.
 11. The crop harvesting header of claim 1 wherein when the cam is in the transport position, the fingers of the reel bats are generally retracted into position along a path defined by the distal ends of the radial arms.
 12. The crop-harvesting header of claim 1, further comprising a reel lock, effective to prevent rotation of the reel during transport. 